COLUMN: A busy season of rescues says DLRAA

It’s already turning out to be a busy autumn for your local air ambulance. Here’s an update of what we’ve been up to in Derbyshire.

We went to 76 missions in September, and so far October is proving to be just as busy.

Last month over 53 per cent of our missions were to road traffic collisions. We also went out to many medical emergencies, making up 14% of our missions, and to several sports related missions and falls. Road traffic collisions are often the top of our reasons for being called out, but did you know that the second most common missions we go to are medical emergencies? These could be anything from a cardiac arrest to a stroke, collapse or allergic reaction. On average, our service goes to three missions every day. Without the help of our loyal supporters, our crews wouldn’t be able to fly. Thank you for helping us get through another busy month.

We’d also like to congratulate all of our London Marathon ballot winners. We now have 25 people running with our charity places.

If you’ve won a place in the London Marathon with the official marathon ballot and are looking for a charity to support with your run, why not consider your local air ambulance?

Our Derbyshire, Leicestershire & Rutland Air Ambulance goes to an average of 1,000 missions a year, each costing approximately £1,700. We receive no government funding and rely entirely on our local communities to keep saving lives. If you’d like to fundraise for us as part of your London Marathon experience, call Derbyshire fundraising manager Collette Richardson on 07990827129.